Brian Kaylor

At National Prayer Breakfast, Hegseth Says US Soldiers Gain Salvation by Dying for ‘Christian Nation’ While Trump's remarks dominate the headlines about the event, more concerning Christian Nationalist comments came a few minutes later.

Last week, the Secretary of Defense called the US a "Christian nation" & said a soldier "finds eternal life" by dying for country. But, sure, some people want to debate if #ChristianNationalism is even a thing.
publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/at-nationa...

Skeleton racer Heraskevych displays images of athletes killed in Ukraine war on his helmet | CBC Sports Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych trained on Monday at the Milano-Cortina Games in a helmet with images of compatriots killed during the war in Ukraine, delivering on a promise to use t...

The Olympics should allow Ukrainian skeleton competitor to honor athletes killed by Russia:
www.cbc.ca/sports/olymp...

Michael W. Smith Worshipwashes Trump’s Profanity and Lies - Word&Way After President Donald Trump rambled, lied, and cursed for 77 minutes at the National Prayer Breakfast, a prominent Christian musician went to the piano to bless it.

After the profane National Prayer Breakfast went on for three hours, Christian musician Michael W. Smith went to the piano as if it were just a normal worship service.

As he used worship to whitewash the profanity, lies, lust for power, and heresy, he made himself an accessory after the fact.

North Hills United Methodist Church Center With Sadness and pain in our Hearts we want to share that on January 29 our Beloved Church was Desecrated by immigration agents who entered our property wearing masks and carrying weapons. Despite...

Despite WH claim about making US "safer" for churches, a UMC congregation recently condemned federal agents for entering property while people were gathered. Church called it "a violation of our sacred right to worship & serve our Lord Jesus Christ freely & safely."
www.facebook.com/NHUnitedMeth...

White House video shows a church while claiming ICE's mission is "to make America a safer place to live" (x.com/PressSec/sta...). But Trump literally took away protections for churches. Houses of worship are less safe because of ICE: publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/ices-cold-...

Michael W. Smith Worshipwashes Trump’s Profanity and Lies - Word&Way After President Donald Trump rambled, lied, and cursed for 77 minutes at the National Prayer Breakfast, a prominent Christian musician went to the piano to bless it.

My latest column reflects on a largely ignored moment at the end of last week's profane National Prayer Breakfast:
"Michael W. Smith Worshipwashes Trump’s Profanity and Lies"
wordandway.org/2026/02/09/m...

👏👏👏

No Kings includes Draft Kings

Opinion | Surprised this Christian channel will air Kid Rock? You shouldn't be. Leah Payne: Those familiar with TBN and its history shouldn’t see it as a surprise

Excellent MS NOW piece by @drleahpayne.bsky.social on Kid Rock performing on TBN tonight & what it says about Pentecostal Christianity:
www.ms.now/opinion/kid-...

"So the fruit of a rotten tree is rotten... They still haven't figured out how to appropriately address their own sexual abuse scandals... We're seeing them just kind of look the other way now."

@briankaylor.bsky.social talking with @sarahposner.bsky.social about Southern Baptists, Trump & more. ⬇️

YouTube video by Brian Kaylor American Christianity Divided in Responses to ICE

Each month, @angeladenker.bsky.social, Beau Underwood & I record podcast episode reflecting on news. But this week was especially good with Angela sharing about Minneapolis.
You can watch video version: www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGQG...
Or listen to audio version: dogma.wordandway.org/198-american...

In the Civil War, it just went on some coins (not even paper money). It wasn't until 1950s that it became national motto. Cover all of that in Baptizing America (bookshop.org/a/110819/978...). Just put link to wrong 1950s thing in piece.

At dueling National Prayer Breakfasts, a religious debate over Trump's immigration policy (RNS) — Trump told the crowd at the Washington Hilton, ‘I’ve done more for religion than any other president.’

Here's the @rns.org article with quote about "evangelicals" at end: religionnews.com/2026/02/05/a... 3/3

4 congressional NPB leaders this year were a GOP Catholic, a Dem Catholic, a GOP mainliner, & a Dem Black Protestant. None would be labeled White evangelical. So why center evangelicals in analysis? Also, there's a divide in Christianity more broadly but not for evangelicals. They're for Trump. 2/2

Quote at end of @rns.org on National Prayer Breakfast seems off. Why the focus on evangelicals? Problem is much broader. NBP was started by mainline Protestants (bookshop.org/a/110819/978...) & led today by wide coalition of Christians. Over-focus on evangelicals is really missing mark. 1/

It's possible I misread his remarks here. But his focus (more broadly) is pushing for churches as a "moderate" place instead of being liberal or conservative. In Minneapolis, I'm pretty sure anti-ICE isn't merely a liberal position. Either way, inclusion of him in piece seemed like a distraction.

I actually think Burge is wrong in suggesting the church is alienating people in Minneapolis by being anti-ICE. That's pretty much the mood of the city! But even it was unpopular, MLK said it best from a Birmingham jail as he criticized White moderate pastors: www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen...

Inside One Minneapolis Church, a Different Type of Protest

In NY Times article on an MPLS Presbyterian church that's supporting immigrants & opposing ICE, a political scientist is quoted calling this an example of mainliners being liberal & alienating people: www.nytimes.com/2026/02/03/u...
I was going to respond but MLK said it best from a Birmingham jail.

“many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. and you will hear of wars and rumors of wars […] false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. see, I have told you beforehand.” (Matthew 24:5-25)

"The National Prayer Breakfast is at its foundation a problematic effort to fuse & confuse American & Christian identities." - @briankaylor.bsky.social

End it.

At National Prayer Breakfast, Hegseth Says US Soldiers Gain Salvation by Dying for ‘Christian Nation’ While Trump's remarks dominate the headlines about the event, more concerning Christian Nationalist comments came a few minutes later.

Dozens of articles yesterday reported on Trump's rambling, profane remarks at National Prayer Breakfast. But I was only 1 to cover the more dangerous #ChristianNationalist remarks by Pete Hegseth: publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/at-nationa...

Over my many years covering about white evangelicals and dominionism, people often asked me: what would it actually look like for them to achieve their goal of taking over the government?

We are now finding out. Listen to the latest Reign of Error episode:

This morning, Hegseth baptized the military as God's crusaders: publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/at-nationa...
Then, he blew up another boat. What a profane "amen" to his heretical prayer.

003: Weaponizing “Religious Freedom”: Trump’s DOJ, "Religious Liberty," and the Attack on a Free Press Listen to Reign of Error with Sarah Posner on RedCircle

An ICE pastor, journalists arrested for covering protest in that church, Trump DOJ weaponizing Christianity to target opponents while ICE targets churches, & white evangelicals still back Trump. @sarahposner.bsky.social & I discuss all of that & more on Reign of Error: redcircle.com/shows/fbed71...

Today on “Is this heresy?” we welcome defense secretary

Yeah, I assumed that's where you got it. There's a trend of congressional responses of just nondenominational Protestant, which has grown so large it's making Pew's list not that great. I've found many on list who are clearly part of a denominational church.

Hegseth's comments at National Prayer Breakfast were full-blown heresy. A dangerous #ChristianNationalist heresy that should be challenged on both civil & religious grounds:

Good piece. Wonder about calling Sen. Marshall "a nondenominational Christian." He's a longtime member of a Disciples of Christ congregation in Great Bend, Kansas. So he's a mainliner.

I put this video in my report (publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/at-nationa...), but here are a few of the key things Hegseth said this morning at National Prayer Breakfast, including that America is "Christian nation" & that soldiers dying for nation get eternal life:

At National Prayer Breakfast, Hegseth Says US Soldiers Gain Salvation by Dying for ‘Christian Nation’ While Trump's remarks dominate the headlines about the event, more concerning Christian Nationalist comments came a few minutes later.

Reporting so far on National Prayer Breakfast is focused on Trump (he's is president after all & said a lot of crazy stuff). But the much more problematic & dangerous comments actually came later from Pete Hegseth:
publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/at-nationa...